Skip Navigation
Remote View
Anime @ani.social
maplebar @lemmy.world

Getting up to speed with Gundam

As a big fan of the Gainax and Khara teams, I'm looking forward to checking out the new Gundam Gquuuuuux. And so, in preparation I've decided to watch some other Gundam stuff, starting with Mobile Suit Gundam (0079) which I've just finished.

So my question for the fediverse today is: having just watched the original MSG '79, what do you recommend I check out next?

Should I just go chronologically? Jump between the "best" ones? Get a sample of series from the different timelines/continuities? What do you all think?

You're viewing a single thread.

17 comments

  • First of all, welcome! Second, you have activated my special interest, so I'll put the tl;dr at the top:

    Generally, I recommend to watch in release order the first time through. Try to get through the core UC (First/Zeta/ZZ/Char's Counterattack) before tackling alternate universes. It sets up the backdrop from which everything else is built off of. Not required, just the recommendation of a fanboy.

    In more detail:

    How much did you enjoy 0079/First Gundam? If it was better than "eh," I highly suggest following up with Zeta Gundam. If you have your doubts, feel free to jump down to Alternate Universes.

    My legs are asleep. Will continue later. 😅

    • About here is where the modern era of Gundam starts. Release dates are all over the place, so production order becomes secondary to interest level in my opinion. It begins with a new AU, so let's wrap those up before getting back to UC. 

      UC gets kind of funky from here since there's a lot of retcon and parallel continuity.

      There's also a bunch of one-off animations from various sources. Oh, and SD Gundam. So much SD Gundam. 

      Please, don't let this be overwhelming lol. There's 45 years of Gundam. Nobody has to go through all of it. I still haven't and I'm what you might call obsessed. Just enjoy the journey! I'll be happy to answer any questions to the best of my knowledge.

      • Not overwhelming at all, and I enjoyed the read. Thanks for taking the time!

        Like many in the west, my first exposure was to Gundam Wing on Toonami, and while I remember thinking the character and mech designs were cool, it never really clicked for me. I never watched it from the beginning, however, so I don't think I can fairly judge it.

        So yeah, I really liked 0079... Both from an "important part of anime history" perspective, but also just as a very good and ambitious 70s anime in it's own right. I come away from the experience as a budding Gundam fan, and I think I've really been sleeping on the show. I'm looking forward to checking out more of the series.

        Because I don't have a lot of time before Gquuuuuux (what a name Khara... lol) premieres, I won't be able to hit all the best stuff in order. So my current plan is to get a sampling of different well-regarded stuff from different eras. I'm thinking about going straight for 0080 War in the Pocket next (Small Gainax connection there too), then 08th MS Team, and then maybe checking out a bit of Witch from Mercury if I have time. Basically I'm going for the Gundam sample platter. lol

        Finally, anything I should know about watching the series vs the films? Are the 0079 films meaningfully different (in terms of story, animation quality, etc.) than the series to warrant checking them out too? Would you recommend speeding through the Zeta films or waiting until later when I have time to watch the full Zeta series? Also, are there any standout must-watch films in the Gundam series in general?

        • Like many in the west, my first exposure was to Gundam Wing on Toonami, and while I remember thinking the character and mech designs were cool, it never really clicked for me. I never watched it from the beginning, however, so I don't think I can fairly judge it.

          Wing was also my gateway. A friend of mine got me watching on VHS during downtime at work (man I'm old), but the official releases were taking forever to come out. So I tried tracking down Toonami reruns, and the damn thing never had a consistent time slot by then lol. So things felt very disjointed. It was only on rewatch when I got the DVDs that I realized that disjointed feel was due to the plot. 😂 I still enjoy it but it's definitely a brain-off show.

          Glad you enjoyed! If the end felt like things could have been fleshed out better, it's because they were supposed to be. The show was slated to be outright cancelled, but they negotiated to at least allow the it to end properly. The end result is about 10 eps of planned content had to be cut.

          The movie versions do some massaging to work in the newtype concept earlier, as well as improve the overall pacing. A lot of series ended up getting the compilation movie treatment, but 0079 is the only one to do it right IMO. They are worth watching on their own, and Ai Senshi is a fucking banger.

          The Zeta movies in particular I do not recommend as a shortcut for the series. Main reason being the ending was completely changed, which makes the start of ZZ problematic if not impossible. The cuts between 80s and 2000s animation are also jarring. If you want the overall notes, they're there. But the series does a far better job of telling the story.

          0080 and 08th Team are fine next steps. They touch on thematics brought up in Zeta a bit, but that's all. They're self-contained and worth watching.

          The only feature film I can recommend at the moment is Cucuruz Doan's Island. Just roll with the Origin continuity differences (Sleggar had already joined the crew on Earth, for example) and it's basically an extended episode of 0079 with modern production. I think there's a good chance it's exactly what you're looking for.

          WfM is its own thing and can be enjoyed at your convenience. Hell, you can probably binge it between episodes of GQuuuuuuX if you wanted lol.

          and even the soundtrack (there are a few Gundam OST cues that I wouldn't be surprised were used as placeholders or references during Eva's production) .

          I'm almost positive I read/watched that MSG and Eva shared some sound staff, and could have sworn that Anno himself was involved somehow. But I cannot find a source, and searches are naturally putting GQX front and center thanks to the Khara connection. So grain of salt all of that, and if I come across the source (because it's now bugging me lol) I'll share it.

          Enjoy!

      • Build Fighters especially is a joy to watch

        This is so frustrating to me because Build Fighters is my favorite Gundam series but I can't recommend it to anyone without asking them to watch over a hundred episodes of other stuff first!

        • It's definitely watchable without prior knowledge. Some friends of mine got into it blind. But you get soooo much more out of it if you have that solid Gundam base. It really is a love letter.

          • I'd agree that it's watchable without prior knowledge, but scenes like the hypnosis one are soooo much funnier if you know what they're referencing!

    • This guy gundams

    • Thunderbolt if a bit of gore and violence is your game.

17 comments